Teaching Abroad Jobs: Important Questions to Ask the School You're Applying to

[occhimarroni88]

hey Charlie, do you have a Bchlr's degree? cuz I learned that ur supposed to have one in order to get a working visa...

[chocowriter1]

Very helpful, indeed. Thanks for this :)

[lexie931]

how did you get the opportunity to teach in Korea? like did you ask to go to another country to teach?

[luckeeleeyeo]

How much of the language do you speak? Should you be fluent in the language or is a basic knowledge ok?

[12Oc7ock]

@charlycheer can u tell me what the benefits are through talk? Like salary, housing, and airfare? Thanks!

[123abcgagaga]

What program are you apart of?

[charlycheer]

@123abcgagaga TaLK teach and learn in korea

[123abcgagaga]

What program do are you apart of?

[boucoupthick504]

What about student loans? Does the program that you're partnered with offer student loan forgiveness? If not, does SallyMae, or whoever, allow for you to defer you loans? How does that aspect work?

[drummingturtle]

Do you work at a public or private school? I'm guessing private by your class size, do you have any opinions on public vs. private? Sorry if you've already talked about this somewhere else or if its to personal.

[charlycheer]

@drummingturtle public but no I dont have any opinions about it yet

[Crystalannkitty]

Are there many holiday breaks that you and the students get time off to travel or whatever?

[charlycheer]

@Crystalannkitty yes :)

[BobtheMoneythedbr]

I think my question is defective or too long, I sent it via PM though if you don't mind!

[laperez3]

can you get the certificate in south korea as you work? or it has to be from the US?

[laperez3]

also did you do 50 hrs or 100hrs of online TESOL? thanks! :)

[charlycheer]

@laperez3 they like all of your certificates and degrees to be from the US but if you can get a job here without the cert then get the cert while here it should be fine because then you have experience and a certificate the next job u apply to so it wont really matter..plus it's online and in the US anyways..I did 150 hrs

[knowntothose]

Awesome video and I am happy to hear that your class room size is not large. What made you want to teach in Korea? How long have you been doing that! Do you see many other black teachers there? How did you find out about the teaching job in Korea? Do you like your job there? Have you had an easy time teaching in Korea? Take care.

[charlycheer]

@knowntothose wow you have a handful of questions haha it's almost my 10th month..I came to learn culture and lang and to see if teaching could be a part of my future...I only see a few blacks..but not in my town...I found out about teaching in Korea from an ex-friend lol...I love my job...and the beginning of teaching was difficult but got easier and easier over time

[045923619]

When you applied for TaLK how did you make your lesson plan? This is the only thing I am nervous about with the application. I have never made one before, so I'm just paranoid over doing it :(

[charlycheer]

@045923619 keep it simple but make it fun. Since I took the TESOL course it made me understand what a lesson plan looks like and typically consists of..just pick 1 topic and it's a 40 min class and find activities gears toward using many forms of learning styles like a listening activity, speaking activity, writing activity and a reading activity or just pick 2..I think this would make a good video so maybe I'll do a tutorial on making a basic lesson plan

[capitalcontested]

Did you need a b.a degree along with your tesl certificate? or was the tesl enough?

[charlycheer]

@capitalcontested for my program you only need 2 yrs at a University or an AA or higher but my program (TaLK) is the only one I know of that allows you to teach in Korea without a BA...if you don't have your degree outside of this program (unless there's another one I haven't heard of) you cannot get your visa to teach here because you must have a degree

[capitalcontested]

@charlycheer ok, thanks a lot for the reply. i guess that's more motivation to finish this last year:)

[charlycheer]

@MyobuUzumaki I came because of your last question haha because of the language, culture and the people :) I think the whole experience is the culture and the people however if you have a interest in teaching I think it would be a good experience

[KPopinRoK]

What kinds of things do you learn with TESOL? They recommend at least 100+ hours, but how is it paced? Like how many hours a week and such. I know they say you can go at your own pace, but I'm thinking there should be deadlines or something? Also, what kinds of things do you do with online TESOL classes? Homework, learning material, etc.

[charlycheer]

@KPopinRoK i'll be explaining this in another video..thanks for the questions..I did 150 hrs but yes asia only really considers 100+ hrs to be acceptable

[KPopinRoK]

@charlycheer Thanks Charly! I was wondering if you could also talk more about your classes? Not just about the lesson plans, but how you handle and deal with the kids. Especially keeping them under control or how you structure the classes to make it equal for all students. As in with their level of English because, like in all classes, I'm sure there are students who learn faster, or are more advanced in English. Or even with the different grade levels you teach, how do you plan for each grade?

[charlycheer]

@KPopinRoK about keeping them under control....ummm ...you don't ....hahahah thanks for your request

[KPopinRoK]

@charlycheer Lol! I guess I shouldn't have asked that since kids will always be kids. To rephrase that question, how do you at least keep them somewhat quiet enough to teach your lesson all the way through? Like games, videos, worksheets, or even just bribing them with candy. Haha...

[charlycheer]

@KPopinRoK I will make a video about that soon because I have a new system and it's working really well (bribary) muahaa

[1kaaa]

i really want to go abroad and teach, but i always get nervous about how you're responsible for planning the curriculum and everything. i'm graphic design student and it has nothing to do with teaching. but with all the planning, applying, and everything it kind of makes me not want to do it sometimes.

is the getting the certificate hard? what type of question are they?

[charlycheer]

@1kaaa it took a lot of work and time but it's not that bad...I spent a lot of time on it but it was worth it...any questions on the course they previously explain and review just like any other class..they teach you the material first

[hardymem]

I know you are speaking of teaching English, but I saw on that website that you can take a Spanish learning course. I am trying to get serious about learning Spanish. Do you recommend that course on that site and if not, is there one that you prefer. I have tried Rosetta Stone and found it very boring and hard for me to focus on.

[charlycheer]

@hardymem I never tried it so I can't really recommend it. I think the best way to learn a language is to be surrounded by it...so make some friends that speak the language or join a spanish club or something like that.

[buzywil]

You should check out this guy's blog, he's been a teacher in Seoul for many years now. I think that he can answer a lot of your questions. Just Google Scribblings of the Metropolitician and it will get you there.

[Afromami]

How long in advance can you ask for vacation time off? or does the school assign you specific vacation days off! ~ Thanks charly

[charlycheer]

@Afromami it depends on your school and if you come through a program they have specific rules on that but with my program TaLK, you must give a 15 day in advance notice

[Kaity11]

I love this vdeo! Its really really helpful! :)

[charlycheer]

@DebatingChopsticks haha that sooo doesn't belong in the teaching video comments..but since we're here..hahaha yes I'm still single however im very interested in someone...and he's interested me..but the distance keeps us apart...maybe he's reading this right now...if so...( I can't wait to see you this summer!) there's really not much other than that that im ready to say at the moment...but im happy :D

[CurlyKoki]

When are you going to the salary/budget video that you said you would do=. I would like to know how much money would be left after necessities and if it's enough to be able to send money home and save or pay off school debt. 

[charlycheer]

@CurlyKoki unfortunately that's a very difficult question because it depends on each person's spending habits. I have a friend in the talk program who just announced that he saved $7,000 in 7 months which means he lived off of approx $500 a month unless he was offered to teach extra classes which meant he was making a little more. It's definitly possible to save at least $1,000 a month and in many cases over that if your salary and motivation/dedication to save is higher. Expenses are not much

[CurlyKoki]

@charlycheer

So does that mean while your there someone can't take a private english tutoring job as well. Does the TALK program allow that.

[charlycheer]

@CurlyKoki private tutoring is illegal in South Korea. You can be kicked out of Korea for private tutoring. Also, TaLK doesn't allow you to have a 2nd job.

[waterflowzz]

@charlycheer hmm it's illegal? everyone seems to do it. My sister did when she lived in korea for about 3 months and she made pretty good money from it.

[charlycheer]

@waterflowzz people do it..but it's illegal. You also must be careful about who knows that you're private tutoring because people can get money for turning you in...and you never know who's looking to bank on the fact that you're doing something illegal

[waterflowzz]

@charlycheer oh? she use to do it in public places like near by cafes......... and strangers that saw her teach would ask her for her info so they can learn from her too, Maybe that was why they asked for her info? to turn her in? but she usually taught at the same place, same time. So it wouldn't have been hard for anyone to turn her in.

[charlycheer]

@waterflowzz most people are not going to turn you in..and many people private tutor but it's still illegal